1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to stands used by hunters, wildlife observers and photographers, and the like, and more particularly to a tree stand having a fixed component that is permanently attached to the tree, and a platform and seat removably secured to the permanently attached component.
2. Description of the Related Art
The general concept of elevating a hunter, photographer, or observer of wildlife has been known for some time. The concept involves the principle that most ground-based wildlife, e.g., deer, etc., generally do not elevate their view significantly above the horizon, as they have learned that most threats are on the same plane as they are and do not arrive from above. Accordingly, hunters have found it much easier to sit in wait in an elevated tree stand for game to approach, and wildlife observers and photographers have also found it much easier to observe and photograph wildlife from an elevated tree stand.
As a result, a number of different types of tree stands have been developed for use by hunters and others interested in wildlife. Some such stands are equipped with a ladder or other means enabling the user to climb to the stand once it has been secured at the desired level. Others are self-climbing stands, capable of being ratcheted up the tree by the user as he or she climbs the tree using the stand. Perhaps the majority of stands are configured for installation about the trunk of a tree, with any ladder or other climbing gear being ancillary to the stand.
Such stands usually include some structure that is attached directly to the tree, a platform, and a seat, although either the platform or seat may be omitted for some very light weight and simple stands. While most manufacturers of such stands make reasonable efforts to reduce the weight of the stand assemblies insofar as possible while avoiding the use of costly exotic materials, it will be seen that a stand assembly including components for secure attachment to the tree, a platform, and a seat, results in a fair amount of weight. This assembly must be carried to the desired site, carried up the trunk of the tree and installed on the tree at each site where the user wishes to observe the wildlife, and then removed and carried back out from the site to a vehicle for transport or to a storage facility for future use. While some of this work might be carried out by a small all-terrain vehicle or the like, it is still generally necessary to park such a vehicle at some distance from the site where the stand is erected in order to avoid alerting the game to human presence.
An alternative to the work presented by removing and erecting the stand each time a hunting or observation session is desired is to leave the stand erected permanently at a site that has proven successful in the past. However, this alternative requires the hunter or observer to erect multiple stands at multiple locations, if it has been found that such multiple locations produce better results at different times. This is obviously quite costly in comparison to having only a single stand. Another drawback to such an arrangement is that a stand left unattended may be seen as abandoned property, and taken by some other individual. This is clearly not a desirable possibility, and as a result, most persons using tree stands will accept the labor involved in removing the stand after each use and carrying it from the site. This is obviously a laborious and time consuming task, and may limit the use of such tree stands only to those capable of such exertion.
Thus, a tree stand solving the aforementioned problems is desired.